by Anneken Tappe at CNN
Americans got into a lot more debt in February as rampant inflation kept up the pressure, the Federal Reserve’s consumer credit report showed Thursday.
Debt levels jumped by nearly $42 billion to a total of almost $4.5 trillion. That’s an annual increase of 11.3%, seasonally adjusted, far outperforming economists’ expectations and setting a new high. In January, total credit had grown only 2.4%.
The Fed’s historical consumer credit data goes back to the early 1940s.
Revolving credit, which includes credit cards, jumped by 20.7% to about $1.1 trillion. The category increased by only 4% in the prior month.
Nonrevolving credit, such as student or car loans, grew by 8.4% to $3.4 trillion, also outpacing a smaller January gain.
Americans have been challenged…